Spy

Review: Susan Cooper (Melissa McCarthy) is an ace analyst for the C.I.A., and is invaluable directing hotshot field operative Bradley Fine (Jude Law), giving him live intelligence and directions via his earpiece that not only allow Fine to complete his missions, but Susan is often the voice that keeps him alive on his dangerous forays into the field. Technically Susan has been trained as an operative at the C.I.A.’s “Farm”, but she is too valuable back in the office to ever venture out in the cold, and besides, she prefers to live vicariously through her secret and unspoken love for Bradley (oh so) Fine.

The world of espionage is a dangerous place, and constantly evolving. Circumstances dictate that assistant director Elaine Crocker (Allison Janney) send a new agent into the field that is unknown to enemy intelligence agencies. Having never left Langley, Susan Cooper is the perfect choice to go undercover and track Rayna Boyanov (Rose Byrne), a Bulgarian master criminal with access to a nuclear weapon. Needless to say, Susan Cooper cannot remain in the background to simply “track and report activity”; she soon becomes embroiled in all the action. Fellow C.I.A. agent Rick Ford (Jason Statham) seems to shadow Susan on an unofficial basis, despite not being assigned to the operation.

This is a multi-faceted type of movie. During the first scene followed by credits, they are obviously copying the James Bond signature opening, graphics plus song, with some success. There is plenty of dramatic action, shooting and fighting aplenty, but there is also a tongue in cheek element going on that tells the viewer this is also a bit of a comedy film as well. The whole nuclear bomb plot is a thinly disguised McGuffin, to quote Hitchcock. It mostly gives McCarthy a chance to tear-ass around Paris, Budapest and Rome to pull off various escapades. Jason Statham steals the show whenever he is on screen. His Rick Ford is akin to an action hero version of Inspector Clouseau; just wind up Rick and watch the mayhem explode around him. Statham is hands down the funniest part of the film. Good stuff. Expect to see Spy 2 soon….

Huh? What the ….: I seriously doubt C.I.A. operatives are all trained to fly jet planes and helicopters, just in case they might need to some day.

F Bomb Alert! – Movie exceeds 50 of them.

Dialogue Nuggets: Bradley Fine – “I couldn’t do what I do without you in my earpiece.”